Marcelle Zahra on the piano and Karl Mifsud on the viola will be giving a concert next Saturday 22 December at 7.30pm at the Sala Isouard, Manoel Theatre, Valletta.

After winning the Ian Tomlin Napier/Malta Scholarship in 2003, Marcelle began pianoforte studies at the music school with Simon Coverdale. In May 2006, she placed second in one of the Edinburgh Festival competition solo piano classes. She was selected to perform at the Napier Showcase held at the prestigious Queen’s Hall in Edinburgh and was recently invited by the Malta Summer Arts Festival where she gave her debut piano solo recital in Malta.

Marcelle recently graduated with First Class Honours in Music. Selected as the best representative of the Music School she has also been awarded the University Class Award Medal in recognition of her outstanding achievements. She has recently started reading a postgraduate degree (MMus) at Trinity College of Music in London.

Karl Mifsud started playing violin at the age of eight, later studying with Mario Bisazza. In 2004 Karl moved to London where he started lessons with Oliver Butterworth. Last year he discovered a passion for the viola and now plays only this instrument. He is currently a student of Israeli violist Rivka Golani in London.

Karl has given recitals in London and in Israel as well as performed with many orchestras in prestigious venues such as St John Smith’s Square and Blackheath Halls in London, the Finlandia Hall in Helsinki and St John’s Co-Cathedral in Malta. In May 2004, on the occasion of the accession of Malta in the European Union, Karl was chosen to represent his country in a concert with the Helsinki Strings, which took place in the Finlandia Hall. Karl worked with several world-renowned artists such as Boris Brovtsyn, Richard Markson, Deniz Gelenbe and Naomi Butterworth. He plays a viola made by Jan Pawlikowski in Krakow in 2007.

Marcelle and Karl have chosen the following programme: Sonata in A Minor, D.82 Arpeggione by Franz Schubert (1797-1828); Adagio & Allegro, Op.70 by Robert Schumann (1810-1856); Marchenbilder, Op.113 by Robert Schumann and Andante e Rondo Ongarese op.35 (transcribed by William Primrose) by Carl Maria Von Weber (1786-1826).